<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Equalize by Oksanaray</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24092299">Equalize</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oksanaray/pseuds/Oksanaray'>Oksanaray</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Legacies (TV 2018)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>henelope - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 22:42:19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,172</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24092299</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oksanaray/pseuds/Oksanaray</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of Miss Mystic Falls Pageant, Penelope has a one-way ticket to Belgium while Hope needed to rethink some things about her life. What would happen if the two met that night?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>41</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Equalize</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello! Well, I am the one who hasn't updated Scarlet Dew in a few months (I had serious health reasons), but I'm back!!! As I lost a bit of writing pace, I decided to come back with a (almost) Helenope one-shot that was stuck in my head. The other story will be updated, just be patient with me and I hope you enjoy this little madness that I wrote.</p>
<p>English is not my first language! I tried my best to translate perfect, but I certainly missed some mistakes. I'm sorry!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Penelope sighed deeply, expelling all the air from her lungs. She was tired of trying. Everything and nothing. Even though she gave up, resigned, a long time ago, she tried one last time ... and it didn't work. She still loved Josie. Not romantic or passionate love. Her love was mostly caring, for everything they had or didn't have. So, saying goodbye to her was difficult. Sore. At that moment, she would have preferred that her ex hadn't read the letter. It was too late now. For them. It was too late a long time ago. For Josie, however, Penelope wished it were not too late and that the girl could impose herself, grow up and perhaps not remain in her sister's shadow. Penelope sighed again, now resting her head on the side of the bus stop. She had been sitting there for some time. Just her and a single suitcase, on the side at the bus stop. The rest of her belongings have already been sent to Belgium, in small boxes in the last month. Nobody noticed.</p>
<p>She felt her cell phone vibrating in her pocket, it should be the eighth call in an hour. A huge headache was coming, she was sure of it. She wasn't in the mood to have that conversation at that hour. She needed to think about it, think about what her next move would be. Penelope had a peculiarity, something that no one knew about her. When she needed to think, she listened. She didn't even think about studying at Salvatore the first time it happened. She was at home and had an ugly disagreement with her mother, the reason she doesn't even remember. Penelope thought about running away from home, went to the bus stop, and waited. Minutes later, a lady started talking to Penelope, who did not understand why since they did not know each other. The woman talked about her daughter having cancer, then she said that her husband and sister already had the same disease. The girl listened, sympathized, felt the pain of that unknown and suffering woman. Penelope understood that the fight with her mother was nothing, a simple adolescent whim.</p>
<p>It happened again. Penelope was waiting for the bus after going to the cinema alone and a man so old, it was a surprise that he was still alive, started to open up with the girl. An ex-doctor who now had nothing to do. He was already retired and his family was too busy to keep company during the day. Penelope listened to the man, even missed her own bus. When the old man left, with a smile on his face, the girl felt alive and grateful. The third time she was at the bus stop because she wanted to. There was no need to go anywhere. She wanted to listen. And it didn't take long. Apparently, Penelope had a confident face. People saw her and talked to her. And that helps the girl. Listening to other people's problems opened her mind, allowed her to analyze her life more calmly. She continued to do this until the day she went to Salvatore. Sometimes she tried to listen, but the bus stop near the school was almost always empty, after all, the school was practically isolated. Sometimes she would sit there, where she was at this very moment, and perform a projection spell, appearing at a bus stop in the city to listen.</p>
<p>She needed a single soul, but it was a little late at night. There was no one waiting for a bus in Mystic Falls, much less in front of Salvatore. Penelope began to wonder what time it would be for people to be off the streets already. When she thought about taking out her cell phone and calling her mother, after all, she didn't have much to do, she saw a silhouette approaching the bus stop. It didn't take long for her to recognize the person. "Great! Just who I wanted to see now”, she thought full of irony and fear. Hope Mikaelson stopped in the middle of the street when she saw the girl sitting at the bus stop, with her head against the side shield and a look she did not remember seeing on Penelope. But Hope didn't know the girl very well to tell if she was sad or just bored. Besides, Hope didn't want to know. Penelope was one of the reasons she was on her way to the bus stop, so knowing how the girl felt was not a priority in her life.</p>
<p>"Right. The last person I wanted to see right now,” said Hope as she approached Penelope.</p>
<p>The girl who was sitting straightened up, with a small smile of mockery because of what was said. At least the feeling was mutual. Penelope looked at the girl, still standing, in front of her. She was wearing a dark robe with the Salvatore logo on it and her makeup was still on her face. The witch was not blind, Hope was always one of the most beautiful students there. That strange outfit combination left Penelope confused, wondering what the girl was doing on the street in a robe. She took a deep breath again, wishing it wasn't another monster attacking again. “Fucking weird school,” she thought.</p>
<p>"Going somewhere?" Hope asked dryly, finally taking a seat on the bench. In the other corner, far away from the other witch.</p>
<p>"That is the goal of being at the bus stop," she replied without looking at the newcomer "go somewhere".</p>
<p>Penelope liked to play with her luck, that was a fact. She liked to be called bold. Someone who is not afraid to take chances. Like that phrase, she heard somewhere "I lose my friend, but I don't lose the joke". What could she do? It was a stupid question.</p>
<p>"Unbelievable", the witch straightened up on the bench, completing "I should punch you now".</p>
<p>Penelope nodded, verbalized "Or do something else," while gesturing the place with her hands "no one would know".</p>
<p>"What?" Hope asked confusedly "Don't even answer, I'm not talking to you".</p>
<p>Penelope could accept that. Certainly. But in addition to the still-makeup face, she saw that Hope's eyes were swollen and red. First, she wanted to know which make up brand is crying proof. So, she wanted to know how ugly the damage she had done to the girl's relationship. How would she do that? Well, Penelope likes to listen, but she's also good at talking. Talk to a girl? Easy. She managed to get a girl to open up so fast, it was scary. Would Hope Mikaelson be the same? She could try. There was no harm in doing it after all Hope already wanted to punch her.</p>
<p>“Belgium" started by gaining the attention of the witch/werewolf. "From here to the airport, from the airport to Belgium".</p>
<p>"Are you dropping out of school?" Hope asked in shock.</p>
<p>"I already left".</p>
<p>"Josie already knows?" she asked now looking straight at Penelope, who was still looking ahead feigning indifference.</p>
<p>“Josie doesn't need to know anything. But yes, she knows ... about five minutes ago or something”. Penelope shrugged, not caring. It was the truth. The two had nothing else, she didn't have to tell the girl. But it was obvious that whatever Penelope Park did inside Salvatore would automatically be connected to Josie Saltzman. And it wouldn't be surprising if her ex's friends said that she was doing it to tease Josie in some way. She just didn't know if the recent companion at the bus stop would think similarly, accusing Penelope of something that, like a miracle, she had no control over.</p>
<p>Hope was uncomfortable with the situation. She was pleased with the partnership with She-Devil and her against the zombies. He considered Penelope to be a talented witch, without much opportunity to show her power. Salvatore was a safe place, they didn't need to learn attack spells, but it was different now. With a monster showing up every week, Hope admitted that she couldn't fight alone. She needed allies, and even with the Saltzman twins always around, she knew that Penelope inside the school would be a powerful partner. On the other hand, Hope thought, Penelope was not entirely reliable. Selfishness, narcissism, arrogance, and any other noun that indicates zeal for herself and nothing else, was the mark tarnishing the perfect look of Penelope Park.</p>
<p>For a long time, Hope only heard derogatory words to define Penelope. So she was not surprised to learn that information about Landon's mother, a secret she didn't know what to do with, was revealed by the petulant witch. The only thing she wanted to know was why. Penelope always acted thinking about herself, so Hope didn't understand what she would profit from telling Landon her secret. Besides, of course, ruin their relationship.</p>
<p>"Why?" she asked after a temple reflecting.</p>
<p>"My mom got a job there."</p>
<p>"Not this. Why did you tell Landon?” Hope asked impatiently.</p>
<p>"Oh," Penelope smiled. It would work, she thought. She knew Hope needed bait to start talking, like a mouse caught in a trap trying to catch the cheese. In this case, she was the bait herself because the only reason for them to talk would be Penelope herself. Pure audacity. For those who already received a fire spell by their ex, an angry tribrid was nothing. "Relationships shouldn't be based on secrets," she said at last.</p>
<p>"You had no right!" raged. "It was something between Landon and me, not you."</p>
<p>“I speak from experience, a secret that big shouldn't be between you. I did a great and wonderful favor,” Penelope said scornfully. Unfortunately, it was the truth. Her old relationship had a big secret, something that was beyond her ability to manipulate. The least she could do to help, failing miserably, was to make Josie independent. Hope could change something simple and chose not to. "Besides," she continued, "you like to be so perfect that I wanted to give you a taste of what it is like to be hated by the one you love."</p>
<p>"That was low, even by your standards," the witch Mikaelson declared, turning her head to face the street.</p>
<p>“Am I wrong, Hope? Tell me, how long would you hide that?” questioned still keeping the calm of a predator waiting for its prey to approach. Which was funny, because she wasn't the wolf there. "On a beautiful sunny day, after your future son's 18th birthday would it be a good day to tell?" Honestly, Hope didn't know how to answer. Didn't she think she would keep the information for so long ... an 18-year-old son? What a joke! But sometimes, she even forgot that she kept that information. Don't judge her. A lot was going on and telling her boyfriend, or whatever they are at the moment, that she knew about his mother was not a priority against trying to stay alive. Perhaps she would speak after all this was over. He would try to find a way to bring his mother back, and Hope would help. Impossible to do that and save the school at the same time. Hope was powerful, but she couldn't split in two. His gaze landed again on the witch at the other end of the bench. For milliseconds she mourned the loss of a witch with as much potential as Penelope.</p>
<p>Penelope smiled, this time trying to show compassion. She knew she played dirty. And she knew she had no right to be in the middle of anyone's relationship, especially two people to whom she had no connection. Hope was not her friend, at most, there was a small affiliation for the welfare of friendships in common. And Landon ... what the fuck was he doing in Salvatore? But she didn't regret what she did. In a distorted way, she did a favor. The more Hope waited to tell, the bigger the damage.</p>
<p>"You are very special, Hope" the short-haired witch started to speak, pausing for a few seconds when she felt her cell phone vibrating again. She took it out of her pocket, looking at the notifications of the thirteen missed calls. She silenced the device and went back to saying "You will have the opportunity that practically half of that school wanted to have". The witch smiled devilishly at the confusion on Hope's face, but she continued, “You can say whatever you want about me to me and I won't say anything. You can release all that anger within you. I will not apologize, but I will give you this opportunity”.</p>
<p>"Wow! Now all my problems will be solved,” Hope mocked.</p>
<p>"It will work, trust me," Penelope assured, oozing confidence.</p>
<p>"Trust in you?" Hope asked incredulously, now she settled on the bench, turning to face the other witch. “After today you are the least trusted person here. The best thing about today is the fact that you're leaving”. She didn't believe it, not with the intensity that the words came out of her mouth. Now she was facing Penelope with her arms crossed, the witch on the other side of the bench raised an eyebrow daring her to continue. And Hope said, “I don't like you. You are always where it suits you, never compromise with anything outside your comfort zone. You are rude to people, and at times extremely vulgar. You are so proud and self-centered that you don't see that your actions, your gestures, and your words hurt the people around you”.</p>
<p>"I am also the only person you can be true to" Penelope replied immediately. “You are not a saint, nor divine, nor untouchable. People put so much expectation on you, and even if you try to isolate yourself, you end up being carried away to please them for fear of losing them”. Penelope sat on the bench, stretching her legs towards Hope, continuing to say, “That's why I talked to your little boyfriend about your secret, to get you out of your comfort zone. For you to react truthfully, without control. Because, Hope Mikaelson, you cannot control the circumstances. And you are wasting what you have been given if you do not live with your freedom”.</p>
<p>"What you said about me was little, I know how terrible I can be" Penelope continued to speak, being shot by Hope's icy gaze. “But it was enough for you to be true. No more controlling your words, your actions, your gestures for fear of hurting. Stop living as a 40-year-old person responsible for saving the world and start living as a young woman who is not even 20 years old” the witch pulled the air into her lungs. “And you were right, you shouldn't trust me. Of course, I wouldn't let you talk shit about me without me responding properly”.</p>
<p>"Because you are the only person who would speak to me like this" Hope concluded, much to their surprise. "Because everything terrible I said about you is exactly what makes you not afraid to face me".</p>
<p>"No, I have. I'm just not afraid to face the possible consequences” Penelope replied smiling. Despite the harsh words, she didn't feel uncomfortable. It was the truth about her. She did what she did thinking only of herself. Like now. She was interacting with Hope thinking about herself, not trying to apologize for what she did to the girl. There were times when she tried to act without being selfish, as with Josie and, even so, in the end, it went wrong. So, it did not really bother her. What bothered her was realizing that Hope was the exact opposite.</p>
<p>The girl already had an eccentric life before she was even born, and behaved as if she existed only to use her supernatural abilities. Until recently, she had no friends. Always mourning silently about what happened to her family. Always seen as one of the most powerful beings on the planet. That was brutal pressure on a single person, Penelope thought. The girl built a wall so that people would not see her as she must be fragile behind all external perfection. However, it showed signs of weakness, small cracks in the wall over these months of madness at Salvatore. As at this moment, Hope was fragile to the point of having a civil conversation with Penelope Park, the reason why her night was not perfect. That, Penelope thought, was a big crack. For Hope, unfortunately, the witch had no patience or time to try to break the wall. She would climb and jump on the other side. She just did not know what she would do next.</p>
<p>"Do you want to try?" the witch asked quietly, "Don't be perfect for a few minutes?"</p>
<p>“Penelope ... I'm not in the mood. And I still don't trust you,” Hope replied uncertainly. “Don't forget that I'm still angry. Punching you can still happen” she completed gesturing to the street in the same way that the girl had done earlier.</p>
<p>"You don't have to trust," she said, watching Hope lift her legs to the bench, hugging them close to her body, and Penelope would be lying if she said she didn't try to sneeze during the movement. "You just need to answer one question."</p>
<p>"Just this? One question?" she asked incredulously, with a small laugh shaking her voice. "How can a single question make me less perfect for a few minutes?"</p>
<p>“You need to pay to see it, Hope. One question and nothing more” Penelope pointed out, watching the changes in the face of the girl in front of her. Confusion. Fear. Unbelief. Was she able to see it all in Hope's expressions? Finally, acceptance came. The girl looked deeply at Penelope, nodding. Penelope, for her part, had a satisfied smile on her face. She pulled her legs, previously stretched, to her body imitating the position of the other witch, pronouncing the words in a serious and fluent tone while looking into the eyes in front of her "Why are you wearing a bathrobe in the middle of the street?".</p>
<p>Hope's laugh came out loud and shrill, breaking the silence of the night and the loneliness of the two girls sitting at the bus stop. She laughed continuously, only losing her pace when she lacked air, but she soon filled her lungs to continue creating an entertaining melody. She did not expect this, not really. Anything but that question, especially because of the conversation that preceded the question. Wiping the tears of joy that streamed down her face, Hope asked, still amidst laughter “Really? Is this the big question?”</p>
<p>"I'm not going to lie saying that I never imagined you like this, but you're half-naked at a bus stop and that must have a great explanation," the witch explained quietly.</p>
<p>"I'm not naked!" Hope quickly defended herself as she tried to straighten the garment to cover more areas of her body "I'm wearing my pajamas under."</p>
<p>"OK, first: I didn't say you were naked, thanks for ruining my dreams" Penelope joked pretending to be devastated "Second: it's an important question, so answer it".</p>
<p>e street once again "it was a day full of emotions. I think I just forgot what I was wearing”. Hope only noticed what she was wearing when she walked through Salvatore's gate into the street, feeling a soft icy breeze on her bare legs. "I didn't want to go back."</p>
<p>"So you did something without thinking about the consequences," Penelope pointed out.</p>
<p>"I think" Hope shrugged "I just wanted to be alone. Not alone in my room, but alone being away from everything around me. I felt good after talking to Lizzie, but in my room, the bad feelings continued. I needed to get away from it all”.</p>
<p>Penelope questioned in her mind why the girl remains in her human form if she wanted to be alone, after all, she knew that Hope had a habit of running through the forest in the form of a wolf. She wouldn't ask that out loud, not out of curiosity, but because she said she would only ask one question. She should analyze her own words before making a new proposal. Despite this, she was satisfied with the direction of the conversation. Hope was opening up. The witch expected a short, thick response to which she would have to develop something to explain the imperfection in Hope Mikaelson. However, the girl herself was doing this.</p>
<p>Hope didn't mind telling Penelope about how she felt before she left the room. Maybe because Penelope was leaving, or because Penelope didn't care about Hope's feelings. Or because Hope didn't want to be alone and wanted to tell anyone that she couldn't take that much responsibility anymore. Then she started to speak. First about how tired she was of being constantly reminded of things from her past. It was partly her fault, for always reliving that in her mind, but it didn't mean that she wanted to hear things like "that was a dress that your father bought". Not wanting to dwell on that, Hope talked about how surreal the number of monsters had been showing up at school in the past few weeks, making Penelope nod. Finally, taking advantage of the girl's silence, Hope said that she was seriously considering going home to the French Quarter in New Orleans, leaving Salvatore once and for all. Which reminded her of Penelope's departure.</p>
<p>"Why Belgium?" she asked.</p>
<p>"My mom got a job there," she replied. Penelope reached for her cell phone, thinking whether to look or not to see how many more calls were there. Ignoring the device, she continued to say, "Mom gave me the option to stay, but it seems that I finally was a coward and ran away." She no longer had a reputation to lose within the school, so she continued, "I think it would be easier to start from scratch in a new country than to try to redeem myself here." In perfect sync, the engine noise caught the attention of the two who looked out onto the street. There was the bus, approaching at a slow speed, giving them a little more time "I think I could say that I am a friend of Hope Mikaelson, it would facilitate my climb to the top".</p>
<p>Hope smiled without denying the last sentence. They were nowhere near being called friends, not even with that little intimate conversation. But it wouldn't hurt her. She watched Penelope get up and take her hand to her suitcase. "My main story would be when we fought zombies in the forest," Penelope said now taking a short walk to a stop near where Hope was sitting. "But I think the biggest charm would be to talk when you went into the kitchen at night and couldn't stop looking at my legs."</p>
<p>"I did not do it!" Hope lied. She had done that, she just didn't think Penelope knew. It was one of the nights, a full moon when she went running in the forest. For no reason, just run. When she returned, she went to the kitchen to drink water and found Penelope breaking into the refrigerator. The girl wore pajamas that were not her size, getting short and glued to her body. Hope stared but looked away as soon as she saw Penelope turn around. The girl held a plate of a half-eaten sandwich next to a block of cheese with an apple on top of it. She didn't even care about Hope's presence, she kept eating everything on the plate right there. Definitely high. So, Hope didn't imagine that she would notice the looks she gave while taking a whole bottle of water while still in the kitchen.</p>
<p>Hope came back to reality when she saw Penelope put the suitcase on the bench, almost reaching her feet, just as the bus was passing by. Nonstop. She saw Penelope open the suitcase and remove a piece of clothing from inside. A navy-blue overcoat. Now she could see the back of the bus, leaving, while the garment was placed on her legs, making up for the lack of fabric in her robe. Hope didn't understand what happened, not even when Penelope closed the suitcase and put it back on the floor, then immediately sat down next to her.</p>
<p>"You missed the bus" was all she managed to say.</p>
<p>“Oh, please! Do you think I would take the bus to the airport? My mom sent me a car,” she said, a little proudly. "The problem is ..." she sighed "the car arrived hours ago".</p>
<p>The witch Mikaelson took a few seconds to process the meaning of the sentence. She looked at the street, looking for a parked vehicle that may have gone unnoticed by her. No cars, the street was empty, as she had observed when approaching the bus stop. "You did not go?" Hope asked, just to be sure.</p>
<p>"I could not. When I saw the car, I knew I couldn't go,” she replied with a shrug. “I know that I would lose a lot if I went. This school is insane, but the best learning is in practice, right? ” she asks directing her eyes to the girl next to her, who seemed to be more comfortable with the extra piece of clothing on the slightly cold night. "My mom is furious with my irresponsibility," she added, laughing.</p>
<p>"I asked the driver to stop here, I got out of the car and sent him away" Penelope continued when she noticed that Hope was waiting for her to elaborate on her story, "I sent a message to my mother and I've been avoiding her calls ever since." Her cell phone never looked as heavy as it does today. It seemed that with each missed call an extra kilogram was added to the device. She felt guilty about giving up. Or persist, depending on the point of view. It was rare to make plans with her mother, plans that could benefit both, both have strong and imperative personalities. The last, perhaps the only, agreement that worked between them was the young witch's stay in Salvatore. “I just don't know my next move, literally. I planned to stay here until the time of our flight because she is a true manipulative witch. If I got close to that airport, I would be walking from Belgium whether I wanted to or not” sighed.</p>
<p>"To top it off, I can't go back to Salvatore because I'm officially not a student anymore so I can't go back to my room" she laughed at Hope's confused look. "So, I waited for a bus to pass, I waited for another, and another and I didn't get on any." Just get on the bus, she thought, get on the bus, and find a hotel on the road, tomorrow you can calm things down. But she wouldn't be able to get on the bus, because Penelope knew that if she stayed away from Salvatore, for just one night, she would never come back.</p>
<p>"We could run away," Hope said nonchalantly.</p>
<p>This time the two laughed together. Coming from Hope, this could only be an attempt at a joke, perhaps the only way to break the heavy mood that both she and Penelope were experiencing at the time. For Hope, running away from problems would only cause more problems. There is no point in running away and leaving a note telling you where you were going. People who love her would think she was kidnapped or in danger and that would be a huge headache. But Hope isn’t sure if what she said was just a joke. For Penelope, it was redundant. In a way, she just did that, and she didn't even have to go very far to run. There needed to be something, a roof to escape and she didn't have it.</p>
<p>"I already ran away, Hope" the witch replied still laughing. “Besides, you are too straightforward to do that kind of thing. You have probably already thought about the pros and cons”.</p>
<p>"This is overkill, even for me" Hope tried to disguise it, still laughing at her joke that contained a background of truth. She thanked Penelope for not realizing it, or at least not provoking her with this possibility. "You know," Hope continued "if I squeeze my eye out a little, I can see the smoke coming out of your head." She laughed "You are thinking too much".</p>
<p>Penelope looked at the girl with a serene smile, but the confusion in her eyes was evident. "I think we can say we switched places for a while," Hope explained. " I'm not thinking too much, unlike you".</p>
<p>"No, no" Penelope laughed. “You still have a long way to go to reach my level. But, you can see that not always doing something without thinking will have bad consequences. Of course, we exchanged a few sparks in our conversation, but it made up for speaking openly everything you thought, right?”</p>
<p>"Yes," she replied with relief. "Honestly, I didn't think my night would end by talking civilly to you" the girl laughed.</p>
<p>“Oh! Are you going to abandon me already?” Penelope questioned, trying to be dramatic by holding her hand to her heart.</p>
<p>"You understand what I mean," Hope replied. She seemed much more relaxed in the presence of Penelope, especially with the approach of the girl. Hope could move her foot, protected by a slipper, a millimeter forward, and end up touching her fingers on the witch's thigh. "I wasn't kidding when I said I could punch you."</p>
<p>"I know. I appreciate that you are talking to me, even if I don't deserve it yet” she replied looking away to the street. “You really were the last person I imagined showing up here. Not that I imagined someone showing up”.</p>
<p>Penelope remained silent, just watching the street. Maybe talking to Hope wasn't a smart idea at the moment, she thought. After all, she wanted to find a solution to her problem by listening to other people's misfortunes. With the witch by her side, who was never physically as close to her as she is now, it was a little more intense than she expected. Talking to Hope wasn't going to show the perfect solution. It would probably just point out what she shouldn't repeat next time. It would be difficult for Penelope to analyze her own life with the perception of her own mistakes through someone else's eyes. The girl's problems were, directly and indirectly, connected with Penelope herself. To be honest, she didn't even know why she wanted to try to solve everything at that moment. It was too much for just one night. Penelope needed to work out her future, tonight she needed to take a literal step. Thinking about a solid future would not be possible without knowing a destination. She just needed to decide what the next step was. From the moment she refused to embark for Belgium, she accepted different responsibilities in her life. She couldn't make mistakes in the next decisions, not risking needing her mother's help. Penelope was not disowning her family; she was putting pride ahead. Her mother would certainly condemn her when Penelope finally answered the call and said, "I don't know what I'm doing," and she was too proud to admit it to hers.</p>
<p>Hope, on the other hand, had little on her mind now. Only one person occupied that space. Surprisingly, it was the girl next to her. Hope watched Penelope, enjoying the silence between the two. From that distance, Hope watched the yellowish artificial light highlight the witch's skin tone, almost unnaturally golden. Perhaps she could understand Josie's difficulty in forgetting Penelope. Her facial expression, always cheerful and confident, was now filled with doubts. Hope wondered if that was the way her own face stayed almost a hundred percent of the time. But there was something else there. Hope can see the tiredness making the girl's eyes heavier, each time she blinked her eyes took longer to open. It was late at night when she left the room. Even so, the girl's mind seemed to work at full speed, Hope doubted that Penelope would be able to sleep that way. Hope took a deep breath and had her nostrils invaded by the smell of the ocean and oranges. She carefully tilted her body towards the witch, making sure that that exotic smell came from Penelope. An eccentric scent. Hope had a feeling of freedom and summer, the heat burning her skin. At that moment she had everything to feel bad about, but she couldn't explain how or when she started to feel like she was floating. Because, at that moment, she felt at peace.</p>
<p>Closing the distance between the two, Hope used her foot to nudge the girl's leg. Penelope, a little scared by the subtle touch, almost jumped off the bench at the contact. She stared at the girl, questioning the action. "Come on," Hope said as she continued to nudge the girl's leg with her foot. Confused and starting to get angry, Penelope got up from the bench followed by Hope. "It's getting cold and I think it's late at night," she said as she pulled on Penelope's overcoat over the robe. Ocean and oranges became more intense with each breath "You can stay in my room tonight".</p>
<p>"Sorry, what?" Penelope almost shouted in question "I heard you right and you said I will sleep in your room?"</p>
<p>"Yes," she replied, starting the walk, in slow steps, back to school. "Think of it as a balance between saving the day and doing something reckless." Hope stopped, putting her hands in her overcoat pockets, turned to face the other witch still standing in the same spot at the bus stop. “I will not leave you here alone while trying to decide what to do. But I don't want to stay here until the sun comes up. So, I'm inviting you to sneak into my room”.</p>
<p>"Ok," she shrugged as she picked up her bag. With a few long steps, she managed to keep up with Hope who had already moved back toward the school gates. Penelope wouldn't accept the offer so easily if it was made a few hours earlier, but she was exhausted. Sitting is also tiring. Perhaps stopping for a day would be the best, a good night's sleep could be the solution. She wasn't going to Belgium, but she wasn't going back to Salvatore either, it wouldn't be her room. Staying in Hope's room meant that she couldn't stay for long. She would thank Hope for doing this, but not before without teasing the girl in the best Penelope Park style. "You know," she said, already following the rhythm of the girl beside her, "I always knew that I would sleep with you after I left Salvatore."</p>
<p>Not even Penelope's charming smile was able to stop Hope's movement. A light punch to the girl's arm, to hide the red and heat dominating Hope's cheeks. But Penelope would speak something obscene disguised in a double meaning sentence, for sure. It would be too late to withdraw the invitation, she thought as she watched Penelope move her hand up and down where Hope hit her. "Don't even think about saying indecent things in my room," she said.</p>
<p>"Noted. You don't like dirty talk in bed,” Penelope teased, watching the girl take a deep breath trying to stay calm. "To be fair, Hope, you're putting words in my mouth" the girl continued, approaching the other "When you could put something else". Penelope was in danger of getting punched again, maybe even receiving a spell, but she didn't want to waste the only chance she would have. After all, this would be the last night she would spend with Hope. The first and last. She finally climbed that wall and managed to jump to the other side, invading Hope's isolation space. Penelope would tease her to the limit. Penelope wanted to leave a personal mark for everyone close to her, something that her friends would think "This is something that Penelope would say or do". Due to the circumstances Hope had just joined her circle of friends, even if it didn't last much longer. After all, offering the room was a friendly gesture, and Hope would receive the complete friendship package with Penelope Park.</p>
<p>"Penelope, you want to sleep on the bench, right?" Hope asked this time staring at the floor for being unable to look at the witch. She should have known that Penelope would act the same as always as soon as she set foot on Salvatore's land once again. She felt comfortable there, soon she would behave as usual. Hope just wasn't prepared to be bombarded with the libidinous Penelope directly aimed at her. It would be a long night.</p>
<p>Penelope intertwined Hope's arm, leading the way to finally walk through Salvatore's gates saying, "I will behave, I promise."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>It may have a continuation, who knows? If you want I can do it ... or I'll do it just for myself.</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>